Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59

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Geoderma Regional
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/geodrs

Boron adsorption–desorption characteristics of irrigated soils in the

Jordan Valley
T.M. Abu-Sharar ⁎, N. Bani Hani, S. Al-Khader
Department of Land, Water and Environment, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Increasing replacement of fresh water by saline or reclaimed wastewater in the predominantly drip-irrigated
Received 8 April 2014 Jordan Valley (JV) soils poses a threat of boron (B) accumulation in these soils. Twenty nine composite soil sam-
Received in revised form 23 September 2014 ples in each of the two layers, surface (0–25 cm) and subsurface (25–50 cm), were collected from sites located
Accepted 25 September 2014
along the entire JV. The samples were analyzed for major chemical and physical properties. Water soluble B
Available online 30 September 2014
was determined in both hot water and saturated paste extracts. Boron adsorption was carried out from
Keywords:
50 molc/m3 NaCl/CaCl2 background electrolyte solutions of SAR 5, but of increasing B concentration (0.25–
Jordan Valley soils 4.00 μg/mL). These solutions were arranged to percolate duplicate columns of three soil samples representing
Pachic Haplustolls Northern JV of Shuna (Fluventic Haplustolls), Middle JV of Deir-Alla (Fluventic Haplustepts) and Southern JV of
Fluventic Haplustolls Sweimeh (Typic Torrifluvents). Regeneration of B from soil columns was determined. First, duplicate soil col-
Fluventic Haplustept umns were permeated with solutions of constant B concentration of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 or 4.0 μg/mL. Following soil–liq-
Ustic Torrifluvents uid B equilibrium, the columns were incubated at room temperature for one week then permeated with the
Typic Torrifluvents background solution of 0 μg B/mL. The permeation continued until three successive effluent fractions showed
Boron solubility and soil salinity
the same B concentration. The process of incubation/permeation was repeated two more times. The results
Boron adsorption and regeneration
showed that, with the exception of a few outlier values from the Southern end of the JV, B in saturated paste
or hot water extracts wasn't linearly correlated with soil salinity of the surface and subsurface samples. The rea-
son for that was argued to be due to the anthropogenic factor of intensive agriculture that generated high de-
mand on B as contrasted by high rate of salt accumulation in surface soil layers caused by the use of
conservative irrigation systems with increasingly poor quality water. The low B levels in most samples marked
the JV soils to be marginal to deficient in that nutrient. Soluble B in paste or hot water extracts followed a 1:1 re-
lation between either fraction in surface and subsurface layers. However, the hot water extractable B was almost
4 times the corresponding levels of paste extract for both surface and subsurface samples. This implied that crop
uptake of B takes place mainly from the paste extract fraction. Adsorption of B onto the three soil samples
conformed to the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. These soil samples exhibited a similar affinity constant for B
(0.12–0.21 mL/μg), but their maximum adsorption capacity decreased in the southward direction geographical-
ly; being the highest for the Northern Shuna (39.7 μg B/g soil) and the lowest for the Sweimeh (8.7 μg B/g soil).
The similarity of the Langmuir affinity constant reflected the similarity of clay mineralogy. In addition, the de-
creasing adsorption capacity was consistent with the decreasing clay content and CEC of these samples. The
three soil samples showed a tendency for B regeneration while this tendency decreased with the advancement
of incubation/leaching cycles. Almost half of the adsorbed B was leached from the Shuna-North soil columns as
contrasted by half of that quantity for the other two samples.
© 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V.

1. Introduction
The Jordan Valley (JV) extends 110 km from Lake Tiberias in the
north to the Dead Sea in the south. Soil formation is influenced by
more than one parent material including recent alluvium occupying a
narrow flood plain along the Jordan River and lacustrine (Lisan Marl)
deposits overlaid by more than one layer of colluvial sediments
⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: t.m.abu-sharar@ju.edu.jo (T.M. Abu-Sharar).
transported as colluvial fans along the Eastern Escarpment edges. The
moisture regime is Ustic in the north (N 250 mm annual rainfall) and
Aridic in the south. The temperature regime is Hyperthermic in the en-
tire JV. Traditionally, the JV has been the principle fruit (mainly oranges
and banana) and vegetable production basket of the country. A subtrop-
ical climate prevails in the JV with decreasing rainfall and increasing
temperature in the southward direction. Such geographically-driven cli-
mate change evolved soils with decreasing pedogenic development in
the same south ward direction. Further characterization of the JV soils
can be found in Taimeh (in press).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geodrs.2014.09.007
2352-0094/© 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V.
 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59 51

Jordan is a very water-poor country with annual per capita share of

fresh water not exceeding 145 m3 (Al-Bakri et al., 2013). This fresh
water supply shortage is mitigated by the supplemental use of
reclaimed municipal waste water of inferior quality. Subsequently,
soils in the Northern and Middle JV have become partially irrigated
with the reclaimed wastewater. In the South, saline well water is the
major irrigation water resource.
Boron adsorption onto soil solids is controlled by clay content (Alleoni
and De Camargo, 2000; Keren and Bingham, 1985), adsorbent surface
area, which is highly correlated with clay type (Hatcher et al., 1959;
John et al., 1967), soil content of Fe and Al oxides and hydroxyoxides
(Alleoni and De Camargo, 2000; Beyrouty et al., 1984; Goldberg and
Glaubig, 1985; Hatcher et al., 1959; Keren and Gast, 1983; Keren and
Taplaz, 1984; Sims and Bingham, 1968), and organic matter content, es-
pecially in soils with acid pH (Beyrouty et al., 1984; Goldberg and
Suarez, 2012; Gupta, 1968; Marzadori et al., 1991; Yermiyaho et al.,
1988). Boron adsorption was found to increase in the soil pH range be-
tween 7.0 and 9.0 (Chen et al., 2009; Goldberg et al., 2008; Gupta, 1968;
Keren and Bingham, 1985; Keren and Gast, 1981; Keren et al., 1981;
Sartaj and Fernandes, 2005; Sims and Bingham, 1968). In addition, Chen
et al. (2009) pointed out that the increase in B adsorption was more pro-
nounced when Ca(OH)2, as opposed to NaOH, was used for pH adjust-
ment. Soil salinity also enhances B adsorption by promoting the
formation of borate ions available for reaction (Couch and Grim, 1968;
Goldberg et al., 2008; Keren and Bingham, 1985). Mahler (2007) indicat-
ed that soil texture, soil organic matter content, and soil moisture (annual
precipitation, irrigation) are the three most important factors affecting
boron availability in soils. Subsequently, coarse textured soils (sands,
loamy sands, sandyloams) that are low in organic matter are often low
in plant-available boron.
As a result of the use of low quality irrigation water, JV soils may be-
come subjected to accumulation of B. In this regard, Evans and Sparks
(1983), Mass (1984) and Goldberg and Suarez (2011) reported a
narrow soil solution concentration range (0.05–0.5 mg/L) separating B-
nontoxicity from B-toxicity with respect to plant nutritional needs. In ad-
dition, excessive soil B leaching processes require more water than what
is needed for salinity leaching processes. For example, Elrashidi and
O'Connor (1982) reported two-stage boron desorption. The first stage of
adsorption–desorption was completely reversible, but the second one ac-
quired a hysteresis tendency. This phenomenon was not associated with
any soil property except equilibrium between solid and soil solution-B;
the higher the B concentration in the soil solution the larger was the de-
viation. The ability of reclaimed B-enriched soils to re-establish elevated Fig. 1. Map of Jordan Valley showing the major soil sampling sites.
solution levels was also observed by Peryea et al. (1985a, 1985b). These
authors indicated a successively decreasing soil tendency for B-
regeneration with continuous leaching. However, such a tendency in- of the JV is found in Abu-Sharar and Battikhi (2002) and Abu-Sharar
creased when soil was allowed to air-dry before the next leaching. et al. (2007). Collection of the soil samples took into consideration spac-
Because of the gradual intensity decrease of pedogenic factors ing between two successive sites, extent of the site representation to the
(e.g. climate and biota) of soil formation and the decreasing agricultural neighboring farms, the site pedology, crop type, and irrigation water
intensity along the North to South direction, soils of the JV may quality. Since irrigation water quality and cropping pattern adhered to
represent a typical global example of how these factors could affect soil the variation in the JV agroclimatic zones, these two variables were
B availability. Accordingly, this research was initiated with the following the first to be considered when collecting the soil samples. In the North-
objectives: i) evaluation of the B status in surface and subsurface soil ern JV, sampling was focused on citrus orchards irrigated with fresh
samples collected along the entire length of the JV, ii) studying the capac- water from the King Abdulla Canal, while reclaimed waste water or
ity of selected soil samples with different pedogenic characteristics to ad- fresh water mixed with reclaimed waste water irrigating greenhouse-
sorb B from percolating solutions of increasing B concentrations, and iii) vegetable crops was the focus in the Middle JV, e.g. high tech and
evaluation of the tendency of the B adsorbing soils to release that element protected agriculture. Saline ground water irrigating banana orchards
when leached with a B-free solution. represented most of the farms in the South JV. Moreover, there was no
fixed spacing interval in this study since such a priori criterion would
2. Materials and methods cause overlooking of some farms that had one or more of the above
sampling characteristics. The collected samples were air dried and
2.1. Soil characteristics ground to pass through a 2 mm sieve. Selected chemical and physical
properties of these samples were determined according to the standard
Composite soil samples representing both surface (0–25 cm) and soil analysis methods (Page, 1982). Soluble B in saturated paste extracts
subsurface (25–50 cm) layers were collected from 29 sites along the en- or hot water extracts was determined colorimetrically using the
tire length of the JV (Fig. 1). Further data on crop and agroclimatic zones curcumine method of Page (1982).
52 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59

Table 1
Salinity of the saturated paste extract (ECe) and boron concentration in these extracts and in hot water extracta for surface and subsurface Jordan Valley soil samples.b

Site Saturation % Paste extract Hot water extract ECe

μg B/mL dS/m

Surface Subsur. Surface Subsur. Surface Subsur. Surface Subsur.

1 — 4.0 km to the north of North Shuna 53.3 54.5 0.05 0.05 0.45 0.39 1.14 1.35
2 — Shuna North 57.1 56.0 0.06 0.05 0.37 0.35 0.42 0.73
3 — Al-Munsheyeh 49.0 51.4 0.05 0.05 0.32 0.31 0.76 0.79
4 — 1.5 km to the north of Waq'qas 51.3 53.2 0.07 0.06 0.36 0.37 0.85 1.33
5 — Waq'qas 37.4 35.2 0.05 0.06 0.33 0.34 1.00 0.62
6 — Al-Sheikh Hussein 38.8 39.6 0.09 0.08 0.36 0.33 1.12 0.96
7 — 1.5 km north of Al-Zumaleyeh 45.1 48.0 0.13 0.15 0.40 0.41 0.92 0.62
8 — Al-Zumaleyeh 41.5 43.6 0.16 0.19 0.38 0.41 0.85 0.59
9 — Al-Mashare'e 51.1 49.6 0.36 0.32 0.38 0.35 1.16 2.15
10 — WadiYabis 54.5 54.0 0.67 0.69 1.09 1.06 1.08 0.75
11 — Abu-Habeel 39.3 38.6 0.24 0.25 0.40 0.42 1.52 0.80
12 — Al-Qirin 44.6 48.2 0.13 0.18 0.36 0.43 1.21 1.26
13 — Abu-Seedo 42.7 40.6 0.16 0.19 0.47 0.44 0.82 0.87
14 — Kraimeh 42.3 44.6 0.27 0.25 0.55 0.52 1.21 1.00
15 — Balawneh 39.3 28.2 0.34 0.32 0.51 0.54 1.55 1.18
16 — Abu-Aubeida 34.4 36.8 0.27 0.32 0.51 0.63 0.98 0.81
17 — Dhirar 47.3 44.8 0.60 0.56 0.53 0.58 1.24 0.84
18 — Deir-Alla 25.2 25.0 0.30 0.28 0.51 0.49 2.42 0.95
19 — 1.0 km north of Sawalha 36.4 33.0 0.23 0.18 0.64 0.53 1.32 0.93
20 — Ardha 31.4 29.6 0.34 0.28 0.56 0.47 1.06 0.85
21 — 0.7 km south of Ardha 30.5 33.6 0.36 0.39 0.55 0.51 1.48 1.14
22 — 4.0 km north of Karama 25.6 23.4 0.20 0.18 0.53 0.48 2.52 1.22
23 — 2.0 km north of Karama 27.2 29.6 0.39 0.42 0.59 0.63 2.45 1.47
24 — 1.0 km north of Karama 26.7 25.5 0.28 0.31 0.65 0.69 1.92 1.25
25 — Karama 34.6 36.8 2.97 3.16 2.04 2.16 3.35 1.96
26 — 1.0 km south of Karama 41.3 39.6 0.70 0.65 1.21 1.12 2.00 1.40
27 — 3.0 km south of Karama 37.1 39.6 0.21 0.26 0.71 0.81 12.80 11.80
28 — Shuna South 34.1 32.5 0.34 0.38 0.51 0.48 2.50 1.46
29 — Sweimeh 26.5 28.6 2.50 2.41 2.17 1.99 7.52 33.10
a
Filtrate of 20 g soil sample suspended in 40 mL 0.1 M CaCl2.
b
Soil classification 1: Pachic Haplustolls, 2: Fluventic Haplustolls, 3–19: Fluventic Haplustept, 20–21: Ustic Torrifluvents and 22–29: Typic Torrifluvents.

2.2. Boron adsorption
Glass cylinders with 5.0 cm internal diameter were filled with
duplicate surface soil samples to a depth of 15 cm at bulk density of
1.25 Mg/m3. The samples represented soils of contrasting chemical
and physical properties (Northern JV of Shuna: Fluventic Haplustolls,
Middle JV of Deir-Alla: Fluventic Haplustepts and Southern JV of
Sweimeh: Typic Torrifluvents). A thin sand filter layer (1.0 cm) was
placed in the bottom of each cylinder to prevent migration of soil parti-
cles and potential clogging of the draining tubes. A filter paper disc was

3.5

3.0
Saturated Paste:
2.5 Y =1.0176X (R² = 0.9948)
Subsurface Soil Sample

2.0

1.5

1.0 Hot Water:

Y =0.9712X +0.0114(R² = 0.9784)

0.5

0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Surface Soil Sample

Fig. 2. Relation between B concentration (μg/mL) in extracts of saturated paste (▲) and hot water (•) of surface and subsurface soil samples collected from 29 sites along the Jordan Valley.
 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59 53

25.0

Subsurface Soil:
20.0 Y = 3.7292X + 0.6574 (R² = 0.9728)

Hot Water Extract

15.0

10.0
Surface Soil:
Y = 3.6883X + 0.658 (R² = 0.971)
5.0

0.0
0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0
Saturated Paste Extract

Fig. 3. Relation between B concentration (μg/mL) in extracts of saturated paste and hot water for surface (▲) and subsurface (•) soil samples collected from sites along the entire
Jordan Valley.

also placed on the surface of each soil column to prevent disturbance of
soil aggregates when successively replacing one solution by another.
Each soil column was vertically placed on the top of a fraction collector
tray in such a way to facilitate collection of the permeating solution in
the test tubes placed in the holes of the tray. The fraction collector
was adjusted to move one position after siphoning an 80 mL leachate
volume. Boron concentration in each leachate fraction was then deter-
mined. The soil columns were first saturated by capillary rise of a
blank solution having 0 μg B/mL and 50 molc/m3 NaCl/CaCl2 total elec-
trolyte concentration of SAR 5. The solution was then placed in a
Marriott bottle device adjusted in such a way to provide a constant
water head of 5 cm above the surface of each soil column. Permeation
Table 2
Selected physical and chemical properties of the three JV soila samples employed in the B
retention study.
Soil Parameter Shuna-North Deir-Alla Sweimeh
Surface Subsur. Surface Subsur. Surface
of the blank solution continued until steady state hydraulic conductivity
(HC) was achieved. The selection of SAR 5 and 50 molc/m3 solution was
aimed at maintaining stability of soil structure according to Abu-Sharar
(1988) and eliminating the effect of background solution on B adsorp-
tion. In this regard, Majidi et al. (2010) showed that increasing electro-
lyte concentration (0.01 M NaCl) to 0.1 and 0.5 M increased B
adsorption maximum by 30% and 75%, respectively. Moreover, at the
equi-molar concentration, CaCl2 increased B adsorption more than
NaCl. The positive effect of ionic strength was attributed to a better
screening of surface charges and compaction of double layer thickness.
Soil columns were then successively permeated with electrolyte solu-
tions of the same SAR and total electrolyte concentration, but of increas-
ing B concentration of 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00, 1.50, 2.00, and 4.00 μg/mL.
The permeation of each solution was similar to the permeation of the
blank solution, but the criterion for the replacement of one solution by
its successor was the achievement of steady state B concentration in
the leachate fractions as evidenced by constant B concentration in
three successive effluents.
Boron retention onto each soil column was calculated according to
the following equation:
Subsur.

pH 8.4 8.2 8.4 8.5 8.1 7.7

Carbonate % 57.1 56.0 28.2 27.0 28.2 26.2 Boron Retentionðμg=g soilÞ
Organic matter % 1.9 1.3 1.3 0.8 0.1 0.1 h

i
CEC (cmol(+)/kg) 31.3 29.6 15.6 16.2 8.3 7.9 ¼ Vps  Cps −ΣðVds  Cds Þ− Vfc  Cps =oven dry mass of soil:
SO4 (mmolc/L) 0.7 0.8 14.9 1.3 5.9 71.6
Cl (mmolc/L) 1.0 3.6 5.8 5.0 68.0 256.0
HCO3 (mmolc/L) 2.7 3.0 5.0 3.8 1.2 1.6
CO3 (mmolc/L) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.6 1.0
Na (mmolc/L) 0.8 0.9 3.5 0.8 29.4 126.3 Table 3
Mg (mmolc/L) 1.3 1.7 8.0 3.0 15.2 52.0 Volumes (mL/g soil) of percolating solutions required to reach B-steady state equilibrium
Ca (mmolc/L) 2.7 4.7 13.0 6.0 26.0 136.0 with soil columns.
K (mmolc/L) 0.2 0.2 1.0 0.7 4.6 8.2
Sand % 17.9 18.4 30.6 19.1 50.5 48.0 Soil Boron concentration in the permeating solution (μg B/mL)
Silt % 36.1 33.6 29.9 44.4 35.5 34.0
0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00 1.50 2.00 4.00
Clay % 46.0 48.0 29.5 36.5 14.0 18.0
Texture Clay Clay Clay loam Loam Loam Loam Shuna-North 15.49 12.39 6.42 5.23 6.42 6.65 5.86
a Deir-Alla 9.58 5.47 5.75 5.75 4.38 4.65 5.20
Dominant clay minerals are mica followed by kaolinite. Only small amounts of mont-
Sweimeh 4.23 3.06 2.97 2.75 2.14 1.99 1.99
morillonite can be detected in the northern section of the JV.
54 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59

18.0

16.0 Shuna-North
Deir-Alla
14.0 Sweimeh

B-Adsorption (mg/kg Soil)

12.0

10.0

8.0

6.0

4.0

2.0

0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5

Equilibrium B Concentration (μg/mL)

Fig. 4. Boron adsorption isotherm for three surface soil sample locations in the JV. A soil column was successively permeated with electrolyte solutions of constant salinity and SAR but of
increasing B concentration.

Here: week at room temperature. Boron regeneration was evaluated by per-

Vps and Vds volume of permeating and draining solutions, respectively
Cps and Cds concentration of B in the permeating and draining solu-
tions, respectively
Vfc volume of water at field capacity.
2.3. Boron regeneration
A duplicate set of four soil columns from each of the three soil sam-
ples were permeated with solutions of B concentration 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 or
4 μg/mL in a way similar to that employed in the adsorption study.
When steady state B concentration in the permeating solution from
each soil column was reached, the column was left standing for one
meating each column with the blank solution (0 μg B/mL). The perme-
ation of the blank solution continued until B concentration in the
effluent fractions reached a new steady state condition. The soil col-
umns were again left standing for another week at room temperature
before resuming the permeation of the blank solution as described be-
fore. The process of incubation, permeation and B determination in
the effluent volumes was repeated for a third time.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Status of B in Jordan Valley soils
Soil sample sites and their respective salinity and water soluble B
values are presented in Table 1. Higher salinity and B levels were

0.9

Shuna-North
0.8 Y = 0.548 + 0.1153X
R² = 0.997 Deir-Alla
Sweimeh
0.7

0.6

0.5
c/(x/m)

Y = 0.2469 + 0.0286X
0.4 R² = 0.9691

0.3

0.2
Y = 0.1523 + 0.0252X
R² = 0.9137
0.1

0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5
Equilibrium B Concentration μg/mL

Fig. 5. Langmuir plot of adsorbed-B from three soil sample locations in the Jordan Valley. Each soil column was permeated with solutions of successively increasing B concentration.
 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59
Table 4
Langmuir's (K) and (b) parameters for B adsorption for the three JV soil samples.
Soil B (μg/g)
Shuna-North 39.7
Deir-Alla 35.0
Sweimeh 8.7
observed in soil samples collected from the southern end of the JV. Low
rainfall, high groundwater salinity usually used in conservative drip irri-
gation, the saline nature of lacustrine parent material from which these
soils were derived and the subsequent limited soil development in that
part of the JV are thought to be the major factors leading to such obser-
vations. No strong correlation between soil salinity and either paste
extractable- or hot water extractable-B was observed, particularly
when the outlier values from the southern end of the JV were not con-
sidered in the linear regression analysis. In the later case, R2 was very
poor (0.0556 and 0.0916 for the correlations with B concentration in
hot water and paste extracts, respectively). Most land area in the South-
ern JV was recently cultivated (~ 50 year history) as compared to the
millennia of years of cultivation history in the majority of the Middle
and Northern JV. Subsequently, we think that the human (anthropogen-
ic) factor of soil–water management has obscured the naturally associ-
ated salinity with elevated levels of B (Couch and Grim, 1968; Goldberg
et al., 2008; Keren and Bingham, 1985). In that regard, salts may
accumulate in JV surface soil layers due to commonly practiced
drip irrigation as contrasted by a high crop demand on B in such an in-
tensive agriculture system (two vegetable crops in a year). For most
crops, 1–4 μg/g soil B is sufficient to prevent nutrient deficiencies. Less
than 0.5 μg/g soil B is rated as marginal to deficient (soilquality.org.
au). The highest soil paste extractable B (~3.0 μg/mL) was reported in
Karama, but most soil samples had much lower values (Table 1). The
later figure corresponds to ~ 1.1 μg/g soil B meaning most soils of the
JV may be classified as marginal to deficient in B.
Fig. 2 shows almost a 1:1 functional relation between saturated
paste-B for surface and subsurface soil layers. A similar relation was
also observed for hot water extractable-B. Fig. 3 shows that B levels in
hot water extracts were almost four times the corresponding values in
the saturated paste extracts for the surface or subsurface soil samples.
Given the results shown in Figs. 2 and 3, this finding indicates that B up-
take by crops takes place from the paste extract fraction which also can
be defined as the most labile fraction (Goldberg and Suarez, 2011). In
addition, downward B transportation in the soil profile seemed very
5.0
4.5
4.0
3.5
B Concentation (μg/mL)
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0 1000
Cumulative Effluent Volume (mL)
Fig. 6. Boron concentration in effluent volumes from Shuna-North soil columns successively permeated with three sets of solutions of constant B concentration separated by one week of
standing time.
55
limited. Such movement depends on the concentration of soluble B
in the soil solution, the magnitude of adsorbed B, the number of adsorp-
K (mL/μg) tion sites per unit mass of soil, and the soil moisture content (Bingham
0.16
et al., 1985; Hatcher et al., 1959). The predominance of drip irrigation in
0.12 the JV may have enhanced the former conclusion as the meager quanti-
0.21 ty of irrigation water applied limits the downward leaching of soluble
salts and B.
3.2. Boron adsorption onto soil solids
Selected properties of the three soil samples employed in the ad-
sorption study are presented in Table 2. The results show almost double
the carbonate content in Shuna-North as compared to the other two soil
samples. Very high salinity of the Southern soil sample of Sweimeh, es-
pecially for the subsurface sample, was associated with relatively ele-
vated B levels in both extracts. High salinity in that location was a
result of being much closer to the southern end of the JV where the
Dead Sea starts and where highly saline lacustrine parent material is lo-
cated. Due to the prevailing aridity, all soil samples had low organic
matter content.
Table 3 shows that reaching steady state equilibrium with solutions
of low B concentration required permeating much higher volumes of
these solutions in the case of Shuna-North soil as compared to the
other two soils. This was mainly due to the higher clay content of that
soil on the one hand, and to larger sizes of the dry aggregate and stron-
ger wet aggregate stability on the other which in turn, maintained a rel-
atively open soil structure. In such a case, most of the permeating
solutions were expected to by-pass micro-aggregates and their associat-
ed micro-pores without allowing much of the percolating B to reach the
adsorbing sites, and thus to establish equilibrium with the solid phase.
This hypothesis was confirmed by observing a higher hydraulic conduc-
tivity, and thus a faster solution flux from Shuna-North soil columns rel-
ative to the other soil columns.
The B adsorption isotherms onto the solids of the three soil columns
are presented in Fig. 4. For the three soil columns, Fig. 4 shows almost an
L-type of adsorption. Moreover, the magnitude of B adsorption was the
highest in the case of Shuna-North and the lowest for Sweimeh. This se-
quence was consistent with the decreasing clay content, CEC and OM of
the three soil samples as evidenced in Table 2. The correlation with clay
content was reported by Elrashidi and O'Connor (1982). Moreover,
Keren and Mezuman (1981) argued that if the amount of adsorbed B
has to be expressed on a clay, not on a soil mass basis, then any differ-
ences that were reported among soils would have become much
4 μg/mL
2 μg/mL
1 μg/mL
2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
56 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59

5.0
4.5 4.0 μg/mL
4.0 2.0 μg/mL

B Concentration (μg/mL)
3.5 1.0 μg/mL

3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
Cumulative Effluent Volume (mL)

Fig. 7. Boron concentration in effluent volumes from Deir-Alla soil columns successively permeated with three sets of solutions of constant B concentration separated by one week of
standing time.

smaller. Their argument was based on the hypothesis that B adsorption
takes place mainly on the clay fraction, especially in cases of soils in arid
and semiarid areas. Adsorption data conformed to the Langmuir's linear
type:
c=ðx=mÞ ¼ ð1=KbÞ þ ðc=bÞ
where:
x/m is the amount of adsorbed B per unit mass of soil (μg/g)
K is the affinity coefficient of B for soil solids (mL/μg)
c is the equilibrium concentration of B in soil solution (μg/mL)
b is the maximum monolayer adsorption capacity (μg/g).
Accordingly, the two Langmuir parameters, K and b, were calculated for
the three soils (Table 4). In this regard, the three soils had a similar affinity
for B adsorption, but the maximum adsorption capacity varied consistent-
ly with clay and OM contents and CEC of these soils. Similarly, Arora and
Chadal (2010) reported a high correlation between maximum B adsorp-
tion and these parameters. Moreover, Majidi et al. (2010) showed that re-
moving CaCO3 from a soil sample (CaCO3-equivalent was 18%) lowered B
adsorption maximum by 35%. These authors also showed that B was
mainly adsorbed as an outer-sphere complex. In our study, the Shuna-
North surface soil sample had the highest CaCO3 concentration (57%) as
compared to the other two surface soil samples (28%).
3.3. Boron regeneration

The linear plot of the adsorption data is presented in Fig. 5. Very Results of B concentration in effluent volumes from the three soil
high correlation coefficients of these linear relations were observed. columns are presented in Figs. 6, 7 and 8. Data on leaching soil columns

5.0

4.5 4.0 μg/mL

4.0 2.0 μg/mL

1.0 μg/mL
B Concentration (μg/mL)

3.5

3.0

2.5

2.0

1.5

1.0

0.5

0.0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Cumulative Effluent Volume (mL)

Fig. 8. Boron concentration in effluent volumes from Sweimeh soil columns successively permeated with three sets of solutions of constant B concentration separated by one week of
standing time.
 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59 57

0.30 50
Desorbed B %
45
0.25 Cumulative Desorbed B %
40

35

% Cumulative Desorbed B
0.20
% Desorbed B 30

0.15 25

20
0.10
15

10
0.05
5

0.00 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Number of Pore Volumes

Fig. 9. Boron desorption from Shuna-North soil column previously permeated with 4.0 μg/mL B as influenced by the volume of permeating water (pore volumes).

previously permeated with 1.5 μg/mL are not presented to avoid confu-
sion. The figures show that all soil columns demonstrated a certain ten-
dency to regenerate B in excess of the steady state concentration
obtained from the soil columns that were left standing one week before
resuming the permeation process using blank solution of 0.0 μg/mL B
concentration. The additional B concentration was observed especially
in the first leaching. A possible reason for this is the soil solution evapo-
ration during the incubation period produced more concentrated B than
was expressed in the elevated levels in the first effluent volumes. How-
ever, such a tendency decreased with the advancement in soil incuba-
tion/leaching cycles. Peryea et al. (1985a) pointed out the significance
of short contact time between soluble B and soil solids which can pro-
mote B regeneration. These authors also argued that B regeneration in
effluent volume can be reduced by maintaining low soil moisture con-
tent between the successive permeations. This could be attributed to
limiting B diffusion from occluded micro-pores into the conducting
macro-pores. Boron in the bypass soil regions appears to be effectively
isolated from the leaching solution. Quantities of B regeneration from
the three soil samples are presented in Figs. 9, 10 and 11. The results in-
dicated that the Shuna-North soil sample had the highest capacity to re-
lease almost 45% of the adsorbed B as compared to the other two soil
samples which had a similar value of about 22% B regeneration. This
finding conforms to the calculated Langmuir's affinity constants with
the highest maximum adsorption capacity for the Shuna-North sample.
However, all soil samples confirmed the early reported observation of
the difficulty to leach B from soils enriched with that element.
4. Conclusion
Saturated paste extractable- or hot water extractable-B wasn't corre-
lated with JV soil salinity. A 1:1 relation was found between paste
extract-B in surface and subsurface soil samples. Similar results were

0.14 25

Desorbed B %
0.12
Cumulative Desorbed B% 20

0.1
% Cumulative Desorbed B

15
% Desorbed B

0.08

0.06
10

0.04

5
0.02

0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Number of Pore Volumes

Fig. 10. Boron desorption from Deir-Alla soil column previously permeated with 4.0 μg/mL B as influenced by the volume of permeating water (pore volumes).
58 T.M. Abu-Sharar et al. / Geoderma Regional 2–3 (2014) 50–59
0.14
Desorbed B %
0.12
Cumulative Desorbed B %
0.10
% Desorbed B
0.08
0.06
0.04
0.02
0.00
0 5 10
Number of Pore Volumes
Fig. 11. Boron desorption from Sweimeh soil column previously permeated with 4.0 μg/mL B as influenced by the volume of permeating water (pore volumes).
also reported for the hot water extracts. However, the hot water extract-
able B was almost 4 times greater than the paste extractable fraction.
Adsorption of B conformed to the Langmuir model with similar affinity
constants for the three soil samples employed in this study (Shuna-
North, Deir All and Sweimeh). B regeneration was observed when
these soil samples were previously permeated with solutions of con-
stant B level. However, the magnitude of cumulative B regeneration
was relatively low with the Shuna-North soil sample having the maxi-
mum value 45% of the adsorbed B. This was most likely due to having
the highest CEC, OM and clay contents, thus, the highest B adsorption
capacity.
Acknowledgment
The authors are very thankful to Prof. Awni Taimeh for providing the
soil classification and to Dr. Dale Rachmeler an International Develop-
ment Expert who assisted with the final English language editing, his
contribution wasn't limited to the language itself but went beyond
that. Deep gratitude is also extended to anonymous reviewers for
their valuable comments that substantially improved the quality of
this manuscript.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data associated with this article can be found in the
online version, at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geodrs.2014.09.007.
These data include Google map of the most important areas described
in this article.
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